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Wednesday, June 11, 2014

The Ignorant Parent- Father's Day

I'm excited to share a new series, The Ignorant Parent, with you!
Some friends and I thought it would be fun to write from our different
perspectives on various topics. Our goal is to encourage you when you
need to be lifted up, to show you hope in every situation, to let you
know that you are never alone and to glorify God with the stories that
He has written for our lives. For more background on who we are and how
we know each other, check out our bio page.

Today's topic is Father's Day.

Danielle

Happy
Father's Day to all those dads out there! I don't know about you, but
becoming a parent surely made me appreciate Father's Day, and Mother's
Day for that matter, so much more. I have a greater appreciation for the
long nights and fun-filled days. I have a greater appreciation for all
the hard work done for my benefit. And I have a great appreciation for
the patience and unconditional love I received. I've asked my dad how he
was able to be so patient, gentle, and kind with us ALL THE TIME, and
he just says we were good kids. Well, I thin he was actually just an
exceptionally wonderful father! Thank you, Dad- I love you!

My
husband's and my first Father's Day as parents was one I will never
forget. It was just three days after our first son was born, and because
he was in the NICU and so sick, we had been restricted from holding him
for almost 72 hours. The morning of Father's Day, the nurses told us
our son was strong enough to be held and we all decided my husband
would be the first to hold him. It was the best first Father's Day gift
he could have ever received.

Since the day we became
pregnant, my husband has been a phenomenal father and husband to me as a
mother. He is quite involved in the day-to-day operations of our
household and wouldn't have it any other way. He's the one who does the
laundry and packs the boys' backpacks. He's the one who takes them to
school, checks in with teacher, gives goodbye kisses and thumbs up. And
after a long day at work, he's the one picks them up, brings them home,
and gets dinner going. He reads stories before bed and rocks them to
sleep. He goes on "Daddy Dates" with our boys and tells them that we are
his best friends, well, us and Jesus. And when my boys look back, they
will see a father that was always there and present in the tiniest
details of their lives. They will see a father who loved their mother
Oh. So. Well. And they will see a father who desired with all of his
heart to show them the love of Christ.

Josh's first Father's Day with Keller in the NICU.

Amy

My husband is a Rock Star. Well, maybe not to you but certainly to me. You have probably never heard of his songs, or his band, or had the pleasure of listening to the lonesome wail of his electric guitar. But if you have, you know it's a sounds you will never forget. Because he has the uncanny ability to transfer the feeling of sorrow, joy, love and pleasure into his fingertips, the sounds leave you breathless and yearning.

Jason the rock star.

Playing in a packed venue.

You might think this is how I met him. At a crowded show amongst screaming fans. But it was actually quite uneventful. The world didn't stop. There were no fireworks (at first). This was real life. My girlfriend had pointed him out earlier because, frankly, he was staring a hole into me. I decided I would ignore him. I was not in the market. I had newfound freedom from a previous relationship and wanted to know what single life at the University of Alabama had in store for me. However, God had another plan. He approached me in a bar as I watched my friend walk across the street to her apartment. He thought I was leaving and asked if he could buy me a drink. I politely declined. Here is where he stole my heart. He simply asked if he could talk to me. How was I supposed to say no? We discussed everything that night. My family, his family, faith, religion, our mutual and very deep love of music, admiration of songwriters and on it went until the sun came up. I love his heart. He felt like home.

Fast forward over 14 years, and he is now the father of our beautiful daughter. This Father's Day is his first. I would love to say I am planning something spectacular. Something he an remember forever. But we are just home with Adelyn Belle a mere six weeks after spending nearly two months in the NICU. My Mother's Day gift, his Father's Day gift, is her. And that's all we need. Oh I have an endearing card that I will fill with sweet words and heartfelt sentiment, but it will never be enough to show how passionate I feel that he is my daughter's father. His transformation from a life on the road and endless nights playing his heart out, to suburban simplicity with a wife and a little one has been nothing short of amazing. Since the first night in the hospital, my husband has shown me what it means to live like Christ. He rushed my daughter's meals to her in the middle of the night. He documented her every move in the NICU while I was recovering from preeclampsia and an emergency cesarean section and could not see her. He made sure I didn't miss her first cries, her tiny feet, her beautiful eyes. He showed me what it meant to love like Christ loves His bride (Ephesians 5:25). He truly died to himself the moment Adelyn was born.

This Father's Day will be special and full of passion. NO, it won't hold the strings of an instrument or the roar of a cheering crowd, but what it will hold is something just as dear and magical- our daughter's coos and sweet cries in the morning, a beautiful song just for Dad.

Jason the Dad, with his daughter Adelyn.

Laura

My dad is Superman. At least that's how I saw him for a long time. He's one of those guys that can figure out how to do everything on his own, and he's always trying on a new hat.

He was a CPA by day but a volunteer fire fighter by night. He flew planes. He sailed a boats. He drove RVs. He was also the most awesome cheerleader a kid could have.

My dad sporting his flag look for the Olympics, always a camcorder in hand.

He seemed invincible to me. I hardly ever remember him even getting a cold. But every Superman has his kryptonite.

I arrived home from a diving competition in Spain to find out my dad had a stroke while I was gone. To top it off, I had just three days at home before heading out to the Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. My head was spinning with the news. I just couldn't fit "Superdad" and "stroke" together. I was scared to leave.

Fortunately it was caught very early, so he was fine and even able to go to the Olympics. But my view of my dad began to change. Not in a bad way, maybe just a softer way. He became a little less "super hero" in my mind, but he became a lot more real and tangible. I think it made me appreciate all the amazing things he does even more because he is actually a mortal dad that does super stuff on the side. Now that is pretty heroic.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there! May your day be super!

Elizabeth

Father's Day. So many holidays give us reason to celebrate the fun of life and special people in our lives. When you think of Father's Day, do you think about your relationship with your dad? Your husband? Your brother? How about the one Father who created our hearts to celebrate and our love we celebrate with? We are all children, some of us have children, giving us an amazing perception of love and respect for the earthly fathers we know. Or maybe you don't think you have a reason to join the celebration or you don't feel respected, cherished, protected the way you should. We are each planted into a divine family. He is orchestrating this heavenly family with each one of us designed on purpose. God wants us intentionally seeking a relationship with Him because...

"Because you are precious in my eyes,and honored, and I love you,I give men in return for you,peoples in exchange for your life.Fear not, for I am with you;I will bring your offspring from the east,and from the west I will gather you.I will say to the north, Give up,and to the south, Do not withhold;bring my sons from afarand my daughters from the end of the earth,everyone who is called by my name,whom I created for my glory,whom I formed and made.”

Bring out the people who are blind, yet have eyes,who are deaf, yet have ears!All the nations gather together,and the peoples assemble.Who among them can declare this,and show us the former things?Let them bring their witnesses to prove them right,and let them hear and say, It is true.“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord,“and my servant whom I have chosen,that you may know and believe meand understand that I am he.Before me no god was formed,nor shall there be any after me.I, I am the Lord,and besides me there is no savior."
-Isaiah 43:4-11